Josh Kumra played at King Tut’s in Glasgow on March 5. He’s the guy that sung with Wretch 32 on the track ‘Don’t Go’, which hit No. 1 in the charts. We chinwagged to find out a little bit more about upcoming plans…

How’s everything going with the tour?

It’s been really good actually. We played King Tut’s and have sort of worked our way down, to Newcastle, Manchester, and then played London. It’s been a really good crowd. And it’s just nice to get out the studio – I’ve been in the studio for two years now doing work on my album.

Two years?

Yeah, for the last two years I’ve been in and out of the studio working on the album, so I haven’t had much time to perform.

Are you forever indebted to Wretch 32 for taking you to number one?

I think there’s a really good mutual respect between us both, and he’s actually going to be featuring on my album as well. It’s all fun.

Are you bit annoyed that he got all the glory from it?

I’ve got a lot out of it too. I’ve got good publicity and a lot of people’s heard my voice and got into it, so that’s what matters to me. I didn’t expect to get anything out of it, so to get a number one is good. What was great about it…the urban side of music, like Wretch‘s fans and stuff – I wouldn’t necessarily appeal to them, but to get them on board and liking my music is great, and that’s why I can’t complain about Wretch getting more recognition.

Is there anyone else you’d like to collaborate with?

Yeah, I’m a big fan of Birdy. I think she’s got a wicked voice. I think we’d do something great together.

You were in a lot of tips for 2012.

I’m looking forward to 2012, I think it’s gonna be incredible. The aim is to get the album out and play as many shows as possible.

Do you feel the pressure of being the ‘next big thing’?

Not at all. It’s good to have people waiting to hear your music and it definitely spurs me on to get things done. But I think its all about taking your time and making sure you do it right.

We have quite a lot of varied influences on our style. Our main influences are probably bands like Voivod, Neurosis, Burnt By The Sun, Botch, Mastodon and more recently Swarm of The Lotus. All pretty original bands that have their own sound and identity – I’d say we’re inspired by that kind of originality and also try and create a unique sound.

Do you think metal is a misunderstood genre?

Not really. I guess a lot mainstream press and reviews tend not to understand it, patronise and mock it unfairly at times and just don’t get it or realise how big it is. It can be frustrating but the way I see it you’re either into metal or you aren’t and we all don’t need to explain it to anyone that doesn’t get it. There’s plenty of us metal fans and it’s such a strong genre with so much depth and variety that it never gets tired and it doesn’t matter if it’s not got a wider following than it already has.

How healthy do you reckon the Scottish metal scene is at the moment?

I think it’s been better – there’s not as many extreme and heavy bands as there were a few years ago or gigging as much but there are some really good bands still around. Cancerous Womb and Scordatura are two death metal bands that are playing a lot and I’ve got really into Acatalepsy from Edinburgh recently. There’s probably quite a few newer bands I’ve not heard yet though.

How did you get into metal in the first place?

[Iron Maiden‘s] Live After Death!

You’re based in Edinburgh, which has been dogged by talk of venue closures recently. Do you think the city’s music scene is dying a death?

There’s definitely fewer good venues now, and some of the bigger ones and even the smaller ones have some frustrating curfews and so on, but I wouldn’t say its been a problem for local gigs. It’s just a bit harder to get more of the established bands with a bigger pull to play here rather than Glasgow as a result.

And finally – what gets you up in the morning?

The constant noise in our heads in the form of riffs and melodies that is always there whether we like it or not. When you get up each morning and pick up your guitar and jam out a few ideas, it’s something that happens. It sounds cheesy but when you do this, when you write music, it chooses you – you don’t choose it. So whether you like it or not, when you get up in the morning, there is usually a riff there that is screaming to get out of your head and on to a fret board. Sometimes it’s a curse as you might get up and have something else that’s important to do, and all you can think of is that amazing riff in your head. In saying that, if those riffs weren’t there, you’d never get that feeling of satisfaction when you finally hear it in its completion with the entire band. And that makes it all worth it.

You’re playing Glasgow on March 8. Why should people come down and check you out?

(Arif Mirabdolbaghi, bass): Why not? Our live show is for fans of progressive rock who don’t like the cheesy showmanship of wanking guitars or a front man with his head up his ass pretending he’s Razor Ramone.

Why is your live show better than anyone else’s?

It’s not. We do our best but we’re not exactly Gwar, or GG Allin, or a stage production of Cats.

On the same night of your Glasgow gig, Cannibal Corpse will be playing upstairs in the same building. Who is going to put on the best gig?

I’ve never seen Cannibal Corpse but they’re immortalized in Ace Ventura so they’ve got to be doing something right.

They say there’s a time and place for everything, so when’s the best time to listen to Protest The Hero and where’s the best place?

I’m not sure because I don’t listen to Protest The Hero. Choose your own adventure!

How would you describe your music to someone who has never heard it before?

New progressive rock with a side of thrash.

Who else is floating your boat in the music scene right now?

Outside of Propagandhi and occasionally Mastodon, there’s precious little in the world of rock/metal/etc that does anything for me. I love listening to The Eagles when I go down on my girlfriend though.

And finally, if you were threatened with death and the only way to escape was to either collaborate with Justin Bieber or Miley Cyrus, who would you pick?

This is a stupid question. I would collaborate with either, collect my sack of money, then fuck off to an island to do drugs and play ukulele til I die at 27.

1. Everyone’s favourite gloom rockers The Twilight Sad are a generous bunch. As if releasing the finest misery fuelled album you’re likely to hear all year wasn’t enough, the Kilsyth trio have been kind enough to give us all a bonus track to wrap our ears around. Did someone say bleak power ballad? Whitney Houston would be spinni…too soon? Give ‘Tell Me When We’re Having Fun’ a spin here.

2. Friend of The Daily Dose and all round good egg Rachel Sermanni‘s video for ‘Song For a Fox’ hit the staggering 40,000 views mark yesterday. Her debut EP was released earlier this month and has been on heavy rotation on our stereo (We wish we had a stereo…) You can get a copy of ‘Black Currents’ here for just a fiver and she’ll even sign it for you if you ask her nicely (you don’t actually have to ask, they’re all signed)

3. Capitals have announced their new single will be released on 12 March. ‘Jealousy’ is the duo’s first proper single and it does not disappoint. Having caught them live we predict good things, even though we’re still trying to work out how the pair of them make such a din. We suspect a backing track…Have a listen here.

It took me so long to like Fugazi. Having been immersed in the poppier ‘punk’ environment of the early 00s, I found their music to be slow-burning, complex and difficult to absorb. But as I persevered, these were the things I grew to love about them. When I finally ‘got it’, I really fucking got it, and of all the things I love about that band, Joe Lally’s bass playing is easily in the upper echelons. His playing would incorporate elements of funk, reggae and dub, while sounding as aggressive and earth-shatteringly loud as anything else that spewed forth from the 80s hardcore scene. A slick, dedicated and dynamic player, Joe Lally has been one of the biggest influences on me as a bass player and is one of few four-stringers whose lines get stuck in my head more than the vocals.

2. Mike Watt, Minutemen/Stooges/countless others

Mike Watt’s ethics and punk rock philosophy in regards to how to make a band work has had a huge effect on me. Notoriously excitable and generally just a bit of a dude, his playing was, and still is, wild, diverse and incredibly ambitious. In the Minutemen and fIREHOSE, Watt subverted the usual punk rock approach to bass playing, informed by his love for jazz, soul and Creedence Clearwater Revival. It was the one area where he was never economical and has never compromised on. Now in his 50s and still playing for any fucker that’ll have him on stage (a mammoth list which includes the fucking Stooges), he deserves some heavy respect!

3. Steve Harris, Iron Maiden

Whatever you think of Iron Maiden, I will flat out try you for blasphemy if you tell me he’s a shit bass player. Influenced by copious amounts of hard rock and prog throughout the 70s, Harris’s style was punchy yet technical, snarling yet melodic and he even pioneered the infamous ‘gallop’ which formed the backbone for metal’s almighty boom throughout the 80s. The master gunner of the main stage, and single-handed creator of one of the biggest musical empires in history, Steve Harris is of a dying breed of musical stalwarts whose style is still being ripped off something fierce to this day.

4. Geddy Lee, Rush

Again, Rush are a band who have churned out their fair share of, let’s say, ‘divisive’ material over their near 40 years together. But scrape away the 80s synth rock disasters and you’ll still be left with a back catalogue so fucking huge, dense and mindblowingly inventive that you can surely forgive a few ill decisions. I grew up hearing them blasted on every school run, every drive by the beach (in Orkney I might add) and after I got past his voice, I found myself focusing on Geddy Lee’s bass playing. Every member of Rush is a certified musical freak. Neil Peart’s 4000 piece drumkit that he abuses at every second, Alex Lifeson’s extraterrestrial leads… it’s all good but the frantic pops, gruelling melodic runs and franky baffling one-fingered proficiency of Lee’s playing is the cornerstone of one of the most intelligent and boundary-pushing groups of our time. Plus, he always looks so happy – how can you not dig it?

5. Les Claypool, Primus

Les Claypool is one of few technically freakish bass players who doesn’t just spend all his seconds wanking on you with his low end steez. Famously failing his audition with Metallica because he was ‘too good’, Claypool’s music – with Primus and otherwise – utilises bizarre themes, stories and characters, and always pairs itself with unsettling and sometimes even disgusting imagery. It’s something he’s fully committed to but by employing every rhythmic trick and machine-gun-like slap in his arsenal, he can turn stoned, half-cocked jams into pieces of intense musical mastery. Insane, unlistenable at times but always pounds your brain to mush. Check out ‘Lacquer Head’ or ‘My Name is Mud’. Crazy bastard.

No Island play a The Daily Dose presents… gig at Stereo, Glasgow on 5 March alongside Carnivores, The Darien Venture and Cuddly Shark, with proceeds going towards Action For Children. Get tickets here.